Category: Presidio
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Lover’s Lane
Lover’s Lane The Presidio There is a small trail in the Presidio titled Lover’s Lane. It has a well known history that you can read on the plaque found at one end of what is still existing of this trail. The sign reads: “This trail has witnessed the passing of Spanish soldiers, Franciscan missionaries and…
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Goldsworthy III
San Francisco Presidio Main Parade Ground Anza and Sheridan This is the third installation of Andy Goldsworthy’s at the Presidio in San Francisco. It is titled Tree Fall. There are two other Goldsworthy’s on the Presidio Grounds that have appeared in this site before and can be seen here. The exhibit is in the Old…
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The Young Dead Soldiers
Presidio Bay Ridge Trail Presidio Cemetery Overlook Dedicated on Veterans Day 2009, the Presidio cemetery overlook honors the service and sacrifices of America’s soldiers. A wooded section of the Bay Area Ridge Trail leads to the overlook, which is a perfect place for quiet contemplation. The cemetery overlook offers one of San Francisco’s most stunning…
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Frog Woman Rock
The Presidio SFMOMA is closed until 2016. It is undergoing a $610 million expansion. As a result they are scattering art around the city. The first exhibit was the di Suvero’s at Crissy Field. This particular exhibit “Frog Woman Rock” is part of David Wilson’s Arrivals series. Wilson will develop a series of intimately composed…
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West Coast War Memorial to the Missing
Presidio Lincoln and Harrison Boulevards This memorial is in the memory of the soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, and coast guardsmen, who lost their lives in service of their country in the American coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean during World War II. The memorial consists of a curved gray granite wall decorated with a bas…
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Pacific Coast Garrison Monument
Presidio National Cemetery The Pacific Coast Garrison Monument was erected 1897. Dedicated to the dead of the Regular Army and Navy Union, the monument is a cast zinc (sometimes called white bronze) statue of a Union color bearer manufactured by the Monumental Bronze Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Statues of this type were sold through catalogues…
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Presidio’s Arguello Gate
Arguello and Pacific Entry to the Presidio The Arguello Gate was built by the Army in 1896. The designer was architect J.B. Whittemore. The gate was commissioned in 1895 and installed between 1896 and 1897. Over the decades, it experienced much wear and tear, including being hit by a truck in 1996. This collision knocked…
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The Presidio Pet Cemetery
Presidio McDowell and Crissy Field Avenues This military pet cemetery is a hidden treasure of San Francisco. If you are in the area when construction of Doyle Drive is completed, have a stroll, it is a really sweet place to wander. Surrounded by a white picket fence and shaded by Monterey pines, the pet cemetery…
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Wood Line by Andy Goldsworthy
Wood Line by Andy Goldsworthy Presidio * * This is the second piece by Andy Goldsworthy in the Presidio. The first is Spire. In 2010, Goldsworthy looked to a new part of the park for inspiration – a historic eucalyptus grove near the Presidio’s oldest footpath, Lovers’ Lane. Eucalyptus were planted here by the…
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Philo T. Farnsworth
1 Letterman Drive The Presidio Philo T. Farnswroth (August 19, 1906 – March 11, 1971) was an American inventor and television pioneer. Although he made many contributions that were crucial to the early development of all-electronic television, he is perhaps best known for inventing the first fully functional all-electronic image pickup device (video camera tube),…
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Eadweard Muybridge
1 Letterman Drive The Presidio * Eadweard James Muybridge was an English photographer who pioneered photographic studies of motion and in motion-picture projection. Muybridge was the inspiration for the umbrellas sculpture by Benjy Young. The horses galloping across the top of the pedestal are of extreme significance. His study of horses in motion, sponsored by…
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Yoda
1 Letterman Drive * Yoda by Lawrence Alan Noble In 2005 the Letterman Hospital on the Presidio was torn down and in its place rose the Letterman Digital Arts Complex. This area is home to George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), LucasArts and Lucas Films. The entire campus is 23 acres. There are…
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Ian Ross – SOMA
SOMA 870 Harrison Juxtaposed with Zio Zieglers black and white mural at 870 Harrison street is this vibrant mural by Ian Ross. paints energy. In front of an audience on stage, in his lush backyard studio, or in the warehouse at Facebook HQ, his work is alive. Ross works “without the burden of intention”…
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Memorial Day
Presidio Cemetery – San Francisco
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Presidio Habitats – Digger Bee
I did not find this “habitat” interesting for the art, but rather for the bee itself. I had never heard of a digger bee, and I am sure many others have not either. These bees are solitary creatures and dig a small network of tunnels under ground. At the end of each tunnel,…
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Presidio Habitats – Black Tailed Jack Rabbit
I did this one backwards. I started at the finish, and felt that the exhibit was tired and sad, but then I turned around and saw the view behind me. I figured with the wind whipping around and the salt air, that would explain how tired this portion was. Sadly, that wasn’t the case, the…
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Presidio Habitats – Owl Dome
This “Owl Dome” is another habitat for the western screech owl. Hanging 16 feet in the air it merges tepee and geodesic dome. The design of the dome is similar to the type of nest that an owl might occupy within a tree trunk. A hole allows the owl to enter and nest within the…
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Presidio Habitats – Ai Weiwei
Ai Weiwei first came into my consciousness when I read a Financial Times article about his Sunflower Seed exhibition at the Tate Modern. Please, Please, Please watch this amazing video of the exhibition, it explains the making of the seeds and the meaning of them as well. Ai Weiwei is a Chinese artist and activist, who is also…
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Presidio Habitat – American Robin
There are three signs creating this habitat. “Adapt to Change” “Resolve Conflict With Song” and the one way in the back that is hard to read says “Nest From the Inside Out”. This habitat was built for the American Robin, by Philippe Becker Design. Each letter is framed with a steel armature and mesh netting…
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The Presidio – Habitat
Presidio Habitats. This installation, A Habitat of Flight, is by Surface Design. Their explanation is that this is representative of the Red-Tail Hawks exploration. going through many different habitats, i.e. open spaces interspersed with trees or built structures. The Red-tailed Hawk is one of the most commonly observed birds of prey in the Presidio as well…
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The Presidio – Ten Solitary Chairs
The Presidio of San Francisco covers just under 3 square miles. Much of this is open space. The trust and an organization called FOR SITE began a project called Presidio Habitats as an opportunity for the public to see new, site-based art about place and to experience, the diverse landscapes and stunning vistas of the…
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The Presidio-Andy Goldsworthy
The Presidio Near the Arguello Gate Entry I have always been a fan of Andy Goldsworthy. I love the ethereal and temporary aspect of his work. This is titled Spire and is at the beginning of the Bay Area Ridge Trail near the Arguello Gate, west of Inspiration Point Overlook and north of the Presidio…